What is the UK’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda and how many could go?

BBC NEWS

UK government plans to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda are being challenged in the High Court.

The government argues the measures would reduce numbers crossing the English Channel.

But critics question Rwanda’s suitability because of concerns about its human rights record.

What is the Rwanda asylum plan?

The five-year trial will see asylum seekers who arrive in the UK sent to Rwanda on a one-way ticket, to claim asylum there.

They may be granted refugee status to stay in Rwanda. If not, they can apply to settle there on other grounds, or seek asylum in a “safe third country”.

The government hopes the Rwanda policy will deter people who arrive in the UK through what it calls “illegal, dangerous or unnecessary methods”, such as on small boats which cross the English Channel.

n the year to June 2022, the UK received 63,089 asylum applications, the highest number for nearly 20 years. Of these, almost 16,000 people and their dependants were granted a form of protection by the government.

How many people could be sent to Rwanda?

The UK government said “anyone entering the UK illegally” after 1 January 2022 could be sent, with no limit on numbers.

Rwanda says it can process 1,000 asylum seekers during the trial period, but has capacity for more.

Under the deal, Rwanda can also ask the UK to take in some of its most vulnerable refugees.

However, no asylum seeker has actually been sent to the country.

The first flight was scheduled to go in June, but was cancelled after legal challenges.

The Rwanda policy was first announced by the UK government on 14 April, but there hasn’t been any subsequent drop in the numbers attempting to cross the Channel.

More than 27,000 people have made the journey in small boats this year, including more than 2,000 during the first weekend of September.